Colour in Print Communications: Understanding Why It Matters

If you’ve ever wondered why a particular advertisement caught your eye, why a magazine layout left you captivated, or why a simple flyer managed to make you stop in your tracks, then you’ve already witnessed the magic of colours in print! From the luscious hues that dance on glossy pages to the bold contrasts that evoke emotions, the world of print communications is an artists canvas where colours wield immense power.Posters, billboards, packaging, brochures, pamphlets, catalogs, and direct mail all require colour printing to capture the attention of your audience. Without it, your company will cease to grab the attention of your audience.Get ready to dive into a kaleidoscope of knowledge as we explore the significance and importance of colour in various forms of print media. We’ll unravel the psychology behind colours and how they influence our perceptions, emotions, and decision-making, and how this can be applied in practice.Let’s get started!

The Importance of Colour: Defining Colour Psychology

Colours have a way of affecting our perceptions and behaviours, and the study of their effects on the human mind is called colour psychology.This field of study has touched on how colours impact consumers’ impressions of branding.According to a study by Satyendra Singh, people judge a product within the first 90 seconds. It’s why marketers and graphic designers carefully curate their branding strategies to evoke a positive influence on consumers. With the wrong colour composition, a customer is more likely to reject a product and move on to the next one.

Let’s Talk About Colour Theory

Thanks to the emergence of colour psychology, designers and creatives created colour theory—a collection of rules and guidelines for better communication through colour schemes. These professionals mix primary, secondary, and tertiary colours to produce a palette that appeals to consumers.If you think about it, colour theory is closely related to user interface design. It’s all about guiding the reader about where to look on a page, leading us to the next point of this article.

The Effects of Colour in Print Communications

Every inch of space in print media matters and should be maximized for excellent communication. By adding colour to the picture, you’re impressing and informing the reader at the same time. But how is this possible? Below are the following impacts of colour in print communications:

It Can Make or Break a First Impression

Let’s be real—you wouldn’t continue reading a pamphlet with an unsightly colour combination or difficult to read font. The thought of it is already a pain in the eye!Grabbing the attention of a consumer with bold text and eye-catching colours is a great start. This is also the part where you incorporate the branding of your business, which usually includes colour schemes, font choices, and tone.

It Creates a Flow for the Reader

Effective print communications should guide the readers on where to start, what to read next, and where to end. A continuous flow engages them to read further and see what you have to say, enabling them to absorb the entire message!Take newspapers as an example: their headlines are usually in large black bold font. The juiciest news is often the most prominent and is located above the fold, with a compelling image printed in colour to reel you in.While the copy may be enough to capture the initial interest of the reader, the colour that’s used throughout the article will keep the reader on the page. Colourful designs increase engagement and interaction.

It Adds Value to Printed Materials

In print media, black and white text is the norm, but using colour can significantly improve the sentiment and overall value of your material. For this point, let’s use business reports as an example. Using only text to showcase your data and findings can confuse your audience. By adding coloured charts and graphs to showcase positive or negative findings, it can help the readers comprehend the results quicker.Providing visual aids enables your audience to digest the information and engages them so that they keep paying attention. Featuring charts in different colours also guides readers to distinguish data more effectively. It’s why all corporate businesses require premium office printers to support their colour-printed materials!

It Improves Consumer Retention and Comprehension

People tend to remember colourful visuals better than plain text. Including relevant colours in your communication can increase message retention and recall.Colours also assist in the readability of print communications, like flyers and posters. Different tones and hues contrast against the background and the text, giving dimension to the media. This factor makes it easier for the audience to scan the text and get the message as intended.

Get High-Quality Colour Printing for Your Business

It goes without saying, but without colour printing, print communication just wouldn’t be as effective. The best designers in the world require colour to bring their message and vision to life.Any modern office should provide in-house colour printing, whether it’s for graphic designers to print their own eye-catching marketing materials, for internal distribution, or for reporting meetings with clients and stakeholders. The effect colour printing has on a business’ professional image demonstrates that a company cares about quality and attention to detail, which can positively impact how the business is perceived.Integr8 believes in the importance of colour in print communications and upholds this idea with managed print services. Our mission is to help your business thrive and reduce costs through effective and reliable printing. Clients can always get instant access to the best printers and copiers known for their high-quality colour printing.Contact us now to take your colour printing needs to the next level of convenient and cost efficient!